From Dark to Light
by Kylie Anderson
Summary: As Danny Taylor recovers from his injuries, the team soon finds out that recovering may not be as easy as it seems...especially when they uncover another dangerous plot.
1. Chapter 1

From Dark to Light 

A/N- Sequel to **Bitter Sweet**

Chapter 1

It had been three weeks. It had been three weeks since Special Agent Danny Taylor entered a comatose state. It had been three weeks since Special Agent Jack Malone found Special Agent Vivian Johnson, Martin Fitzgerald and Samantha Spade in a dark cell. It had been three weeks…

Jack, Vivian, Martin and Sam all stood around Danny's bedside. Danny was on life support and Jack was the one to decide if he should be taken off of it or not. One week ago, Jack made the decision to take Danny off of the life support in one week if he didn't show signs of improvement. Now, here it is, one week later and Danny still did not show any signs of getting better. So Jack signed the paperwork to take Danny off of life support.

"Can we each have time alone to say…to say goodbye?" Sam asked the doctor quietly.

The doctor nodded. Jack, Vivian and Martin left the room as well as the doctor. Sam pulled up a plastic chair next to Danny's bed. "Hey Danny," Sam said quietly. "I guess you know that we're taking you off life support. I really wish that we could leave you on it, but you don't seem to be getting better and the doctors say you're in pain. Um…it's just…I don't want you to die! You're such a nice person and…and I don't want to lose another good friend. Why does the world have to be so cruel?"

Sam stroked Danny's hair. "I hope you'll be in a better place. I…I love you Danny. Goodbye," Sam said through sobs before she quickly left the room.

((-))

Vivian was the next to enter Danny's room. She sat on the plastic chair next to Danny. "Hello Danny. I'm not really sure what to say to you. You're a very good agent and a great kid. You've always felt like a son to me and a brother to Sam and Martin. You mean a lot to us Danny which is why I think it's so hard to let you go. Sometimes heaven has to take a few angels from earth to make us see how much you really do mean to us. I'm going to miss you a lot Danny, but I have to know that at least you won't be in any pain. Goodbye Danny," Vivian said gently letting a few tears escape from her eyes.

Vivian stroked Danny's hand and then patted it before leaving the room.

((-))

Martin sat next to Danny's bedside. "Danny, I'm really sorry all this crap happens to you. You're my partner and I should be watching your back 24/7, but I don't. You're the one who's always looking out for me. Remember when I got shot? You were the one making sure I was okay. Remember how I'm addicted to drugs? You're the one who is always trying to get me to stop and set me straight. But what have I done to help you? I can't think of anything. You are an amazing person and…and I'm going to miss you. I'm so mad that you have to die. It isn't fair. It really isn't fair! So…I guess this is goodbye buddy…um…bye Danny," Martin muttered quickly before leaving the room.

((-))

Jack found it very hard to walk into Danny's room. He didn't want Danny to die. No one wanted Danny to die. "Hi Danny," Jack said gently. "I'm so sorry I didn't find you and the others sooner. If I had found you a few days earlier or even a few hours, you might not be dying right now. I'm really sorry. I'm a terrible boss. I'm taking risks and as my bosses put it, 'I'm a lose cannon'. You shouldn't have to pay for my mistakes. I'm sorry I failed you Danny. I'm so sorry. I hope you will be in a better place. Goodbye Danny."

((-))

Everyone entered Danny's room again. They all stood around him. Jack held on of Danny's hands and Sam held the other. Vivian was gently pushing Danny's hair back and Martin was just standing watching the whole scene unfold. The doctor turned off the machines that Danny was attached to and everyone was silent. The only sound that was heard was the heart monitor.

Danny seemed to hang on forever. The heart monitor seemed to be beeping slower now and everyone knew Danny was slowly dying. Sam let silent tears fall from her eyes and Vivian cried as well. Martin could help but let a few tears roll down his face. The silence dragged on for ten minutes. "Jack?" A distorted voice mumbled.

Everyone jumped. The silence had been broken, but by whom? They all looked around wildly. "Jack…it's…not…your…fault. No one…fault…" The voice croaked.

"Danny!" Sam exclaimed.

Danny's eyes were open and he was looking around only to see everyone talk to him excitedly. "What…what's going on?" Danny asked shakily.

The doctor ushered everyone out and several doctors ran into Danny's room. For the first time in three weeks, the missing persons unit had hope.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Danny's recovery was nothing short of a miracle according to the doctors. But they didn't know Danny. They had no idea of the inner strength Danny possessed. Outside of Danny's room, Sam was crying with joy. Everyone had a huge grin on their face. Danny Taylor was going to be okay.

After twenty minutes, a female doctor emerged from the room. "Hello, my name is Dr. Lamoy. Are you Mr. Taylor's family?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

Without hesitating, Jack answered. "Yes, we are." Jack replied.

Dr. Lamoy pushed her blonde hair out of her face. She was smiling. "Alright, you're his family. So Mr. Taylor suffered major head trauma and has been in a coma for the past three weeks. He's been on life support as well. I must admit, his situation looked grim, but he somehow made it through. However, be warned, no human walks away from a condition like this without life changing effects." Dr. Lamoy said quietly. "Do you understand?"

Martin looked at her oddly. "No I don't," Martin answered.

Dr. Lamoy sighed. "We are currently not aware of his mental capability. Due to this, he may have limited motor skills or the mindset of a child or he may not even remember anything. Basically, we're in the dark. We are currently running CAT scans as well as other tests." Dr. Lamoy said.

Jack looked at her tiredly. "When will you know anything?" Jack asked.

Dr. Lamoy looked at her watch. "I'll know in about an hour. Rest assure, as soon as I know, you'll know." Dr. Lamoy said. "I know what it's like to be an FBI agent. I was one for fifteen years until I got shot in the leg. It somehow shattered it so that I would have to wear a brace for the rest of my life. And guess what? The FBI doesn't allow field agents to have leg braces. I was very upset. I can probably understand what Danny is going through."

Vivian looked up concerned. "Do you think he will be able to work in the field again?" Vivian asked.

Dr. Lamoy shrugged. "Once again, I don't have any answers. But, I am his primary neurologist. If you have any questions, contact me directly." Dr. Lamoy said handing Jack her business card.

Jack smiled. "Thank you," Jack said.

Sam nodded. "Yes, thank you." Sam said.

Dr. Lamoy looked at her watch again. "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. Someone got the bright idea to jump off a roof with a rope." Dr. Lamoy said turning down the hall.

((-))

Danny woke up in random places. No one would tell him what was going on. He was wheeled around in his bed to white places with people with white coats. As he faded in and out of consciousness, Danny realized he was in a hospital. Why Danny was in the hospital was still a mystery to him. He couldn't remember what happened, but he knew something was wrong with his co-workers.

Every time Danny tired to tell someone this, he found his tongue woolly making it impossible for anyone to understand him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could have sworn he saw Jack Malone, but before he could confirm it, he was dragged into darkness once again.

((-))

It had been an hour. Then another hour. Then yet another hour passed. The more time that passed, the more anxious Jack became. Why hadn't anyone come to talk to them yet? Dr. Lamoy said it would only be hour. Had something gone wrong?

Jack looked around. He could tell everyone was thinking the same thing. Jack wanted to talk to them and tell them everything was going to be alright, but he just couldn't. "How long have we been sitting here?" Martin finally asked breaking the silence.

"Three and a half hours," Sam replied crisply.

Martin rubbed his eyes. "Do you think something went wrong?" Martin asked quietly.

Vivian shook her head. "No. I should know from experience that these lab people are so slow and sometimes the tests are hard to take." Vivian replied with a gentle smile.

Martin nodded. "Yeah," Martin said tiredly. "I'm sure that's all it is."

((-))

Dr. Lamoy gathered four coffees and walked over to the ICU waiting room. She found the four FBI agents and handed out the coffee. "I'm so sorry that took so long. One of the computers crashed and we had to redo tests and find files." Dr. Lamoy said with a sad smile. "You must be terribly worried."

Jack nodded. "We are," Jack confirmed.

Dr. Lamoy gave him a small smile. "Well, after taking these tests I can honestly say that in my professional opinion, Danny should not suffer any mental relapses or amnesia. However, Danny will most likely have some…emotional issues after such an event. His physical condition isn't very well, but right now; I'm not worried about that. Poor Danny has been trying to ask what's going on and he's utterly confused. I need one or two of you to go in there and explain what happened. I must warn you, he may not remember at first and please don't go into details." Dr. Lamoy said. "I am not a psychologist and I do not want Danny to have a mental breakdown."

Jack nodded. "Who do you suggest go to talk to him?" Jack asked.

Dr. Lamoy sighed. "I suggest that probably a close friend and someone he truly trusts." Dr. Lamoy said.

Jack looked around. Vivian stood up. "I think you need to talk to him Jack." Vivian said. "He does look up to you."

Sam nodded. "I agree with Vivian. I think Martin needs to go in with him too because they are close." Sam said.

Without another word, Jack and Martin walked into Danny's room.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

When Martin first walked into Danny's room, he felt like running back out. It was hard to see Danny hooked up to so many machines, but now he saw all of Danny. Danny was nothing more than a skeleton with skin. He had bruises and scars everywhere. It made Martin more than angry. It made him sick that someone could do this to another human being.

Jack approached Danny first to find Danny was slightly awake. "Danny?" Jack said softly.

Danny opened his eyes wider. "I'm awake." Danny replied quietly.

Martin and Jack stood beside Danny for a minute just looking over him. "Danny, do you remember what happened?" Martin asked gently.

Danny gave them a slight nod. "I was going home after the Brown case. I put my key into…" Danny began.

Jack put his hand on Danny's shoulder. "You don't have to tell us know. We just want to make sure you didn't have any memory loss." Jack said.

"But you usually need a statement quickly…" Danny began.

"Not when we already have the guy," Martin said.

"Vivian and Sam?" Danny asked.

Martin looked at Danny oddly. "What about Vivian and Sam?" Martin asked.

"The guy said he killed them. Are they dead?" Danny asked.

Jack shook his head. "No, no. Vivian and Sam are outside." Jack said.

Danny gave them a slight nod. "Was anyone hurt?" Danny asked concerned.

Jack couldn't believe his ears. Danny was dying a few hours ago and he was more concerned about other's safety. "Only you," Martin said. "We're all okay."

Danny gave them a small smile before he fell back into the darkness. Jack and Martin left the room quietly.

((-))

One Week Later 

"I want you to try and eat some soup." Dr. Lamoy said standing next to Danny's bed.

Danny rolled his eyes. "I can eat it, but I don't want to!" Danny exclaimed.

Dr. Lamoy sighed. "Why?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

"Have you tasted that soup? It tastes like…" Danny began.

"Agent Taylor, please. I promise you I'll buy you a steak after you can eat solid foods. First, you need to have liquids. Need I remind you how dehydrated and malnourished you were?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

There was a knock at the door. Vivian, Sam, Martin and Jack all walked in. "I'll bring in the soup after your visitors leave." Dr. Lamoy said smiling.

As Dr. Lamoy was leaving, Danny called after her. "Love you too!" Danny said.

Dr. Lamoy was laughing down the hall. "I see you're not being cooperative." Jack pointed out.

Danny shrugged. "Have you tasted the hospital food?" Danny asked with a smile.

Vivian nodded. "You've got a point Danny, but…" Vivian said. "Well, I don't have anything else to add. That food is bad."

Danny smiled widely. "See?" Danny asked.

Everyone smiled. "We're glad you're at least feeling better." Sam said.

"Everyone at the FBI misses you." Martin said.

Danny sighed. "I know. I miss working." Danny said sadly.

Martin immediately realized he said the wrong thing. "Come on Danny. I would shoot myself in the foot to miss work." Martin said at an attempt of humor.

Danny gave him a small smile. "So that's what happened…" Danny said.

Jack looked at his watch. "I'm sorry Danny, but we have to leave now." Jack said sighing. "Duty calls."

Danny nodded. He knew it was their lunch break and he found it very nice of them to visit him. "Hey, be nice to the nurses and if you see a cute one, make sure you get their number." Martin said.

Danny smiled. "I'll see you later," Sam said.

"I know you don't want to eat the food, but once you get better, I'll smuggle something in for you." Vivian said in a hushed voice.

"Bye Danny," Jack said as they all left the room.

As Jack was about to leave, Dr. Lamoy caught up to him. "May I speak with all of you?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

Jack nodded. "Of course," Jack answered.

"What is it? Danny seems to be doing well." Sam pointed out.

Dr. Lamoy sighed. "That's just it. Danny isn't doing well at all. He's in constant pain. He doesn't let anyone know, but when I walk by, I hear him sobbing. He's trying too hard to be happy that he makes it obvious he's not alright. He has nightmares in the middle of the night, but when someone tries to help him, he says he's sorry he made so much noise and asks them to leave. If he keeps everything inside, I'm afraid it may become overwhelming." Dr. Lamoy said.

Martin looked up. "Are you saying Danny is suicidal?" Martin asked.

Dr. Lamoy nodded. "It's possible. Danny is very depressed. I was going to have one of our psychiatrists talk to him, but then I thought maybe if your in-house physiatrists talked to him, it would be better." Dr. Lamoy said.

Jack nodded. "I'll send someone over right away." Jack said. "Are you…"

Dr. Lamoy nodded. "Yes, we are keeping a very close eye on Danny." Dr. Lamoy said.

"Thank you for informing us." Vivian said.

Dr. Lamoy gave them a small smile. "He seems like a great kid." Dr. Lamoy said.

"He is," Sam said.

Dr. Lamoy nodded and then left down one end of the hall while the others walked down the other side of the hall.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Lilly James had been a physiatrist for the FBI ever since she could remember. She had spoken to a few of the missing persons unit, but had never actually met Danny. Before she went to the hospital, she reviewed all of Danny's records. The kid had a tough start, but ended up pretty well off. Normally, this would be a one talk sort of thing, but after she read Danny's medical file, she discovered that Danny would need intense therapy. No one knew for sure what happened, but judging by Danny's current condition, she could tell it wasn't good.

Lilly signed in with the hospital and walked down to Danny's room. Before she knocked, she could hear a bit of soft, muffled crying. She knocked on the door. "Come in," A voice replied.

Lilly walked in and saw that Danny was sitting on his bed reading a book. His eyes were slightly red, but he had a large, fake smile on his face. "Hi Danny," Lilly said gently.

Danny seemed confused. "Who are you?" Danny asked.

Lilly gave a small laugh. "Oh how silly of me! My name's Lilly James. I'm an in-house physiatrist for the FBI." Lilly said.

Danny's smile seemed to go away. "Oh…I guess you already know my name is Danny Taylor and my whole history." Danny said quietly.

Lilly didn't say anything. She saw the plastic chair. "Do you mind if I sit down?" Lilly asked.

Danny shook his head. "No," Danny replied dryly.

There was an eerie silence. "What do you want me to say?" Danny asked tiredly.

Lilly shrugged. "I don't know. What do you want to talk about?" Lilly asked.

Danny sighed. "Do you want me to say about how my father abused my mother? Or how about how my parents died? Or do you want me to talk about how I was an alcoholic? Or how I came from Cuba? Or do you want me to tell you about what happened to me in that basement? Do you really want to hear my problems?" Danny fired off.

Lilly sighed. It was going to be a hard day.

((-))

Lilly James met up with Dr. Lamoy in the hall. "Alice!" Lilly called out.

Dr. Lamoy turned. "Yes?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

Lilly shook her head. "I can't get through to him. He's too hostile." Lilly said.

Dr. Lamoy nodded. "Thank you for trying. Do you think he's a danger to himself?" Dr. Lamoy asked.

Lilly shrugged. "I have no idea. He wouldn't give me a straight answer. Sorry." Lilly said before walking away.

((-))

Jack and Martin walked into Danny's room. Danny was sitting on his bed reading. Danny barely looked up at them. "Did you send the shrink after me?" Danny asked after a moment of silence.

"A lot of people have been noticing that you don't seem too well," Jack replied.

Danny didn't even look up. "So that's a yes," Danny said firmly.

"We were worried about you Danny." Martin said. "Some doctors said you were showing signs of depression."

Danny looked up at them. "Depression? Boy is that the story of my life," Danny said before looking back down at his book.

"Danny, we need you know you're alright." Jack said gently.

Danny looked up at them with a small smile. "I'm not going to jump out of the window anytime soon if that's what you're inferring." Danny replied.

Martin gave him a small smile back. "Yeah, we were a little worried about that." Martin said honestly.

"Well, as I see it, if I can survive a car crash, my father, alcoholism, weeks locked up in a cell, being shot and whatever else I've been through, I can survive a little time in the hospital." Danny said.

"Danny, we want you to know that we're here for you. Vivian, Sam and I were locked up there too. He told us he killed you and that nearly killed us." Martin said gently.

Danny nodded. "He told me you all were dead. Only, I was alone. I didn't have anyone but that man. He kept telling me to remember his name, but I don't remember it. Not even now. Each time I would tell him that, I would get tortured more." Danny said shortly.

"His name was Paul Getty." Martin said shortly.

Danny was quiet for a minute. "Paul Getty. Wasn't he the guy who starved three people to death?" Danny asked at last.

Jack nodded. "He went away to prison for life without parole, but then he escaped." Jack said.

"So what happens to Paul now?" Danny asked.

Jack sighed. Danny still didn't know that Paul was dead. In fact, Danny didn't know much of anything. "While you were gone, you missed a lot of things. Do you want to hear a long story?" Jack asked.

Danny nodded. "Alright," Danny said. "Pull up a chair,"

"Well, when you didn't show up for work after ten minutes, Martin here got his pants in a knot. You're very lucky he did because he immediately called your apartment and cell and when you didn't answer, Sam and Martin went over to the apartment only to find you weren't there. We talked to your neighbors, but didn't find much out…" Jack began.

"Only except you're a saint and you may have to get married to Mrs. White, the old lady you helped with watering her plants." Martin added.

Danny laughed. "I'm sure Mrs. White talked on and on." Danny said with a smile.

"Like you wouldn't believe," Martin said returning the smile.

Jack cleared his throat. "Anyway, we were walking out of your apartment when Vivian was shot. She took one to the stomach, but she was fine." Jack said.

Danny nodded. "I know. He must have left for a while, but when he came back in, he was gloating about it. He said he shot her, but he wouldn't tell me if she was dead or not. I…I got sick at the thought." Danny said.

Jack looked at Danny sadly. "At that point, it was just Sam, Martin and myself. Sam was home because she was in shock after what happened to Vivian. Martin and I found a taunting letter saying that the man had two and the FBI had zero and he had three FBI agents to go." Jack said.

"Jack here thought it would be best if the three of us stuck together. So I had to have Sam and Jack sleep in my house." Martin said. "Sam got the couch."

Danny felt like telling Martin off about how to treat a lady, but thought better of it. He had wasted enough time and he wanted answers. "It was about two in the morning when we heard a sound that sounded like a trapped animal. It was Sam. She had been taken right under our noses…even with a surveillance team outside. Once again, Paul left a taunting note. Vivian was the next to go. She was in a hospital room with agents outside her door and yet she was taken." Jack said.

"I received a phone call from the front desk about a letter. When I got down there, something didn't feel right. I pulled out my gun, but I was too slow. I was drugged." Martin said.

"From that point, everyone in my team had been taken. My boss gave me a week and some other people to help look for you guys. I was very angry at her for only giving me a week, so I stayed up all night working on any leads, but most of them were dead ends. Finally, I received a call from Paul Getty telling me where to find him. Apparently he planned to shoot me when I walked through the door." Jack said. "But to answer your question, I was forced to shoot Paul Getty. He was about to pull the trigger and I was almost too slow."

Danny wasn't sure how he was supposed to react. He was rather glad that Paul was dead, but it didn't make him feel any better. His ribs were still broken as was his foot and hand, his lung was still collapsed and he still felt like crap. "Jack, I'm not feeling very well right now." Danny said shortly.

Jack nodded. He had expected this. "Alright, we'll go." Jack said.

As Jack and Martin were leaving, they heard Danny's voice. "Jack?" Danny asked tiredly.

Jack stopped and turned. "Yes?" Jack replied.

"What's my case number?" Danny asked quietly.

"NY 721349," Jack answered automatically.

Danny closed his eyes knowing he was now alone with only the numbers to lull him to sleep. _NY 721349… NY 721349… NY 721349… NY 721349… _


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Danny was awake when Vivian came to visit him the next day. "Hi Danny," Vivian said gently as she sat down beside him.

"Are you going to try and lecture me to do something?" Danny asked tiredly.

Vivian shook her head. "No. I'm worried about you, but I'm not going to lecture you. I just want to know how you're doing." Vivian said.

Danny shrugged. "I'm alright I guess." Danny said.

Vivian nodded. "That's good. Do you want me to bring you something from your apartment? Maybe some other books, magazines…" Vivian suggested.

Danny nodded. "Actually, I was reading this one book before I left. It was a mystery and I think I left it on my dresser. Would you mind bring it to me? I hope it won't be too much trouble, but I'm rather bored and the hospital library doesn't have any good books." Danny said.

Vivian smiled. "It's not too much trouble Danny. I'd love to bring your book. I know how boring hospitals can be. Is there anything else?" Vivian asked.

Danny shook his head. There was an odd silence. "Hey Vivian," Danny said quietly. "Can I ask you a question?"

Vivian nodded. "Sure," Vivian said gently. "What is it?"

"When are Jack and Martin going to get my statement?" Danny asked.

Vivian thought for a moment. "I'm sure they're not going to ask you what happened until you're ready." Vivian answered.

Danny sighed. "Come on Vivian. We both know that the DA is going to want to close this case as soon as possible. They must need to get my statement as soon as possible." Danny said slightly irritated.

Vivian smiled. "Sure the DA wants that, but you know Jack…" Vivian said.

"I don't want anyone going out of the way for this one. Just tell Jack that I'm ready to give my statement." Danny said quietly.

Vivian nodded. "Of course. If that's what you want Danny." Vivian said shortly standing up. "Well, I better get going. I'll pass the message along to Jack. I should be able to swing by your apartment by tomorrow. Hope you feel better,"

Danny watched her leave. He felt very lucky to have a friend like Vivian, yet he was dreading the time he would have to give his official statement.

((-))

Vivian walked in with Danny's book the next day. "I brought the book." Vivian said handing Danny the book.

Danny smiled at her. "Thank you," Danny said gratefully.

"I also brought Jack, Martin and Sam. They're outside." Vivian said gently.

Danny's smile faded. "Al…alright." Danny stuttered.

Vivian put her hand on Danny's shoulder. "Look, you don't have to do this if you don't feel ready. We can wait forever if you need us to." Vivian said quietly.

Danny was very quiet. "You don't have to speak to all of us if you don't feel comfortable…" Vivian began.

Danny shook his head. "No. I want to tell all of you. I don't want anyone hearing second-hand and getting the facts messed up." Danny said firmly.

Vivian nodded as she patted his shoulder. "I'll bring them in." Vivian said.

As much as Danny tried, he couldn't have possible prepared himself. Jack, Martin and Sam walked in. The silence was so dense you could cut it with a knife. "Danny, we're going to record the entire session. If you feel the need to stop at any time, just let us know. We don't have to do this all today." Jack said putting a tape recorder on a table.

Danny nodded. "I know. I said the same thing about a month ago." Danny said in an almost bitter tone.

Jack pushed the record button on the tape recorder. "For the record, state your name." Jack said.

"Danny Taylor. D-A-N-N-Y T-A-Y-L-O-R," Danny said.

"Can you tell us what happened on July 12, 2006?" Jack asked.

Danny sighed. "I work in the New York FBI field office in the missing persons unit. We had just finished a case. As such, I decided to leave the office at around ten o'clock. I hadn't driven to work, so I took the subway. I arrived at my apartment at about eleven. I put the key into my door, when I was grabbed from behind. I was knocked out with some sort of chemical. When I woke up, my hands were handcuffed and my legs were tied with a type of plastic. The man that took me, who I now know as Paul Getty, was asking me who he was. When I told him I didn't remember, he went into a rage. He hit me hard in the face and asked why I couldn't remember someone I put away for life." Danny said suddenly stopping.

"Is something wrong?" Sam asked quietly.

Danny shook his head. "No. I'm just trying to remember what he did next. It was little hard when he did so much…" Danny said shortly. "I remember now. He left and then came back to ask if I remember him now. I told him no and he said it wasn't a problem because he shot one of my co-workers, Vivian Johnson. He wouldn't say if she was still alive and I kept screaming at him. He just laughed at me and slammed the door. I remember becoming violently ill. I thought he killed her."

"You have to understand what he was trying to do. He was trying to torture me in all the possible ways. He didn't want to just torture me physically, but mentally too. He walked in with a hamburger and ate in front of me talking about how good it was. He had a glass of water, but it was out of my reach. I nearly killed myself trying to get a sip of cool water. I can't remember how many times he beat me or the exact weapons he used or when he beat me. When I was locked up, I had no sense of time. All I knew was that he beat me with his fists, a lead pipe and a variety of different things. I was also burnt with a torch." Danny said taking a deep breath.

Vivian silently went over to him and held his hand. "When I heard Sam was kidnapped as well, I grew very concerned. This man had no mercy. When he told me she was dead, I believed him. He also told me he got Martin and finished him off. I became so weak I could barely stay awake because he beat me so often. However, I noticed he avoided hitting me on the head. That suggested he wanted to keep me alive. He never hit me on the head until after he supposedly killed Martin. He was very happy muttering something about getting Jack. He undid my handcuffs and leg ties knowing I couldn't fight back. He smashed my head against the wall and then repeated hit me in the head. After that, I don't remember much. I was conscious, but I just don't remember." Danny said.

Jack nodded. "Alright. You did a good job Danny, but I have one last question." Jack said. "Do you remember when I came in and you shouted something about killing you?"

Danny was silent for a minute. "Yes." Danny said slowly. "I believe I do remember now. You were coming in and I thought you were the man. You need to understand how I lost hope after hearing all of you were dead. I figured that someone would get the case and see that everyone else was dead and then they would assume I was dead, so they would stop looking. I was in a lot of pain then and at that point, I wanted to die because then I could…then I wouldn't have been in the pain I was in…"

At this point Danny started to let a few sobs out. Jack turned off the recorder and Vivian rubbed his back. "It's alright Danny." Vivian repeated gently.

"You did great Danny." Sam said softly.

"Thank you Danny for doing that." Martin said. "You've really helped us."

Everyone stayed just gently talking to Danny. They didn't know all he wanted to do at that point was sleep. He was just too exhausted.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Two Weeks Later

Danny had finally been cleared to go home after spending forever in the hospital. Of course he would still have to come back every day for his daily sessions with the physiatrist and his physical therapist, but at least he was going to be home.

Martin offered to drive Danny home from the hospital. Danny's arm was healing much faster than his leg, so Dr. Lamoy suggested he should walk with crutches. At exactly five o'clock on Friday evening, Martin appeared in Danny's hospital room. He looked over Danny. "Wow, you look so different in jeans and a t-shirt." Martin commented.

Danny looked at Martin and smiled. "Well, you still look different no matter what your attire." Danny said.

Martin gave him a small smile back. "Cute Taylor," Martin muttered.

((-))

As Danny made his way up the stairs to his apartment, he noticed a crowd of people around his door. When they saw him coming, they rushed over to him. "Danny!" An old woman shouted.

"Mrs. White, it's good to see you." Danny said smiling.

"I was so worried about you." Mrs. White said hugging Danny. "Now, I'm going to pay you back for all the kind things you do for me. I'll help you with your groceries and I already water your plant while you were gone. I'm only across the hall so if you need help I can help you and I could make you tea…"

Danny smiled. "You don't have to pay me back Mrs. White…" Danny began.

"Foo! I want to help you." Mrs. White said. "And that's that!"

Danny smiled. A teenage girl walked over to Danny. "Hey Danny," The girl said quietly.

"Angelica! How are you?" Danny asked.

The girl began to cry. "I was so worried about you. We didn't hear any news on you for what seemed like months." Angelica replied.

"I'm fine. I'm more worried about you." Danny said gently.

Angelica shrugged. "I'll be fine now that I know you're okay." Angelica said. "You rock,"

Danny smiled wider. "Hey, don't disappear again Danny. The FBI was knocking on my door. Once they saw my record, they thought I kidnapped you." A man said who looked like he hadn't shaved in years.

"Well at least you cleaned up your act David. It doesn't matter how it may look to other people. All the other people see is a piece of paper. And…" Danny began.

"A piece of paper doesn't define you. You define you." David replied. "Yeah, I know. I'm glad to have you back."

It was at this time that Martin fully appreciated how much Danny helped out other people. While most people would stay away from a junky apartment building like Danny's and go out and buy a nice apartment, Danny chose to live in this apartment building to help others. While what he did didn't seem like much to others, he changed each person's life and even saved these people's lives. "Come on," Martin muttered to Danny pushing him through the crowd.

Martin opened the door to Danny's apartment. Martin walked in, but Danny stood frozen at the door. "What is it?" Martin asked gently.

Danny stared at the door. "I didn't even make it into my apartment." Danny said quietly. "I was taken right here. In this very spot."

Martin gently helped Danny in and sat him down on the couch. "Everything is going to be fine Danny." Martin said.

Danny looked at him. "You know, for the first time in nearly two months, I think I believe that." Danny said.

Martin looked at Danny oddly. "Believe what?" Martin asked.

"I believe everything's going to be alright." Danny said.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Three Months Later

Stepping off the elevator, Danny felt their eyes boring into him. It was his first time in nearly four months that he would be returning to work. It took almost everything Danny had to simply walk through the halls without shouting at the agents to stop staring at him.

It seemed like forever until Danny reached his desk. There, he found a huge surprise. On his desk there were flowers, letters, cards, candles, teddy bears and even a bible. Vivian noticed his shocked face. "It's been that way for nearly four months. A lot of agents got together and decided to do this." Vivian said smiling from behind Danny.

Danny smiled back. "It was very thoughtful of them." Danny said sincerely.

Vivian nodded. "It was." Vivian said looking at the desk.

Sam walked in carrying a stack of papers. "Jack wants me to tell you that Van Doren, from upstairs, told him to tell you to go on desk duty for the next two weeks." Sam said quickly handing the stack of papers to him.

Danny looked confused. "Huh?" Danny asked.

"I said Jack told me to tell you that Van Doren told him to tell you that you're on desk duty." Sam repeated.

Vivian patted his shoulder. "What she's trying to say is that you're on desk duty for the next two weeks." Vivian said.

Danny smiled at Sam. "Well why didn't you say so?" Danny asked.

Sam frowned. "I did." Sam said suddenly laughing.

Danny shook his head as he sat down at his crowded desk with the paperwork. Jack walked into the bullpen quickly. "Where's Martin?" Jack asked grumpily.

Sam shrugged. "I don't know, but it's not even 8:30 yet. Technically, work hasn't started." Sam said.

Jack sighed. He knew Sam was right. The shift hadn't even begun and he was already worried about losing another agent. Martin walked in and set his coat down on his chair. Martin looked up and noticed Danny. "Hey Danny," Martin greeted.

Danny was glad Martin decided not to drag on the matter that it was his first day back. "Hey Martin," Danny greeted back.

Jack set down a file. "Okay, we've got a missing persons case…" Jack began.

((-))

While everyone was out running around trying to find a seventeen year old boy named Steven Kin, Danny was stuck at his desk doing some paperwork. Most people thought that desk duty was where an agent did paperwork all day, but the truth was, there usually wasn't enough paperwork to last all day. So, most of the time the agent just sat at his or her desk doing nothing but thinking. Being on desk duty was the boss's way of saying 'You're not ready to be in the field, but we'll bring you to work to make you feel important'. Danny hated doing nothing.

However, he'd rather be at work doing nothing than be at home doing the same thing. Danny was thrilled to be at work, even if it meant doing nothing. Danny picked up some of the cards and began to read them as he had nothing else to do. When Danny picked up one card, he suddenly had a sinking feeling in his stomach.

_Jack. _Danny thought quickly. _I have to find Jack! _

((-))

Jack was sitting in his office trying to figure out why Steven Kin dumped his girlfriend, when Danny rushed in. "Jack, I believe you need to read what's inside this card." Danny said handing the card over to Jack.

Jack looked at Danny oddly at first, but then took the card and began to read.

_Hello Agent Taylor, _

_I'm glad you're getting better. Do you feel safe now that Paul Getty is dead? If you do, I'm sorry to say, but you're not as safe as you think. I'm still out there and I'm ready. Just when you or any of your little buddies least expect it. _

_Tell me, how is Samantha Spade? I love what she's done to her hair. It's a bit more wavy now, isn't it? And Jack? I'm sure you're reading this card Jack. You're probably the first one Danny ran to. It makes sense as you could probably help the poor boy. But you can't help him. Is Martin well? He looks like he's still on drugs if you ask me. And Vivian had another surgery, didn't see? _

_If you know what's best for you Agent Taylor, you'll follow my instructions carefully. _

_Me: 0_

_FBI: 0_

_FBI Agents Left: 5 _

_The game's just beginning…_

_P.S- I really do hope you're feeling well Danny. You'll need all the strength you can get because this time, I will not fail! You will be dead. _

Jack looked up at Danny simply staring at him. "It has to be a hoax, right?" Danny asked.

Jack didn't answer. "Right?" Danny pressed.

Jack gave Danny a sad look. "We never released what the actual notes contained to anyone other than the DA and our team. The taunting note he left…this is real Danny." Jack confirmed.

Danny simply stared at Jack in horror.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Sam, Vivian, Martin, Jack and Danny were gathered around one table. There was an odd silence. "So this is real?" Martin asked quietly.

Jack nodded. "It is indeed a real threat. It is my theory that Paul Getty did not act alone. He most likely had a partner who told him what to do. His partner never participated in any of the actual events, but he did plan the whole thing. He probably told Paul how to torture all of us. He probably typed each note. This man is probably the most dangerous person to be dealing with." Jack said gravely.

"And he's not too happy that we all lived either," Vivian pointed out.

Jack sighed. "That's right," Jack said.

Sam looked around. "So what are we going to do? Are we going to sit here and wait until this guy takes us and kills us?" Sam asked in an almost hysterical tone.

Danny shook his head. "No. We're not going to just sit here." Danny said firmly. "I wondered why Paul chose to torture me. Why did he take me first? I believe that this was far too planned for me to be chosen randomly."

Martin thought for a minute. "So this guy has something against you?" Martin asked.

Danny nodded. "I think so. Think about it. Vivian was shot and Sam dislocated her shoulder, but I was tortured terribly. Why focus his attention to me unless he had something against me?" Danny asked.

Vivian sighed. "It is very logical." Vivian said.

"So what can you tell us about your history Danny?" Jack asked.

Danny shrugged. "I was born in Cuba. Spanish is my first language. I came over to the US when I was pretty young. My parents died in a car accident when I was eleven. I have an older brother who is into drugs and who knows what else. When I was growing up, I got arrested a few times, I had aggressive behavior and I acted out a lot. I was also an alcoholic, but am now twelve years sober. I worked hard to clean up my act and joined the FBI." Danny said quickly.

Sam nodded. "Anyone left in Cuba?" Sam asked.

Danny gave her a small smile. "I had a friend out there, but Cuba was a brutal place, which was why I left with my family. His name was Santiago and he stole a goat when he was seven. It was purely childish, but in Cuba it's a major felony. One that can be prosecuted by execution regardless of the person's age and it can be done without a trial." Danny said sighing. "I'm almost positive he was killed."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Sam said gently.

"What about your previous associates?" Jack asked.

Danny gave a small laugh. "Well, crime does not pay. Most of them are in prison while a few of them are dead." Danny said.

"Do you think they would be out to kill you?" Jack asked sharply.

Danny put up his hands. "Hey you guys, I did some stupid stuff as a kid and even as an adult, but it was nothing serious. I stole a car once, but that's as serious as it got. It's nothing to kill someone over. Especially since it happened a long time ago." Danny said defensively.

"So that leaves you're work with the FBI," Vivian said. "And we all know how every criminal loves us."

Martin tapped his pen on the desk. "Wait, your only living relative is your brother. You mentioned he was into drugs." Martin said. "Did he ever ask for money?"

Danny nodded. "Of course. He was always coming by asking for money, but each time I turned him down." Danny said. "Look, I know Rafael Alvarez is a jerk, but no offense, I doubt him or his friends could have arranged to do something like this. He's not this smart although I do wish it were him."

Vivian looked at Danny. "Why?" Vivian asked.

"At least then we could arrest him. He needs to be locked away for good." Danny said.

Vivian and Jack exchanged looks. "You two haven't gotten along well?" Vivian asked.

"It's procedure to call the next of kin when an agent or anyone is injured. I'm sure you called my brother and I'm sure you left a message and I'm sure you noticed that he never showed up for four months. That's why Jack is my emergency contact. Outside of this table, I have no family." Danny said coldly.

Vivian and Jack exchanged looks again. Danny and his brother obviously didn't get along. This was one lead worth looking into.

((-))

"Rafael Alvarez?" Jack asked as he walked into a mechanic shop.

A man slid out from under a car. He looked at Jack and then noticed Martin behind him. "Yeah? Who's asking?" Rafael asked bitterly.

Jack pulled out his badge. "FBI," Jack answered.

"Damn! I didn't do nothin'. I'm a legitimate mechanic. I didn't steal nothing or steal drugs or whatever it is you think I did." Rafael said quickly standing up.

Martin looked over Rafael. He was obviously using drugs. "We're here about Danny Taylor." Martin said firmly.

Rafael laughed. "Oh of course you are! Only you don't know who you're talking about. There is no Danny Taylor. His real name is Alvarez. The stupid kid thought by changing his last name that it would change who he is." Rafael said shaking his head.

Martin had to take a deep breathe for a minute. He felt like clocking Alvarez's teeth out. "Your brother was seriously injured, you know that right?" Jack asked.

Rafael shrugged. "Yeah. Some guy named Malone called me to tell me that. It's only a shame the kid ain't dead." Rafael said.

At this comment, Martin knew he wouldn't be able to stop himself from seriously injuring Rafael. However, Martin couldn't do anything to Rafael because Jack already had him pinned against the wall. "Did you tell any of your 'friends' to hurt your brother?" Jack hissed.

Rafael looked terrified. "No! No!" Rafael shouted. "Please let me go!"

Jack slammed Rafael into the wall again. "Did you plan to harm Danny?" Jack growled.

"No! Please I didn't hurt Daniel! Please…" Rafael begged.

Jack let go of Rafael and let him sink to the floor. Jack and Martin began to turn away, when they heard someone shout. They turned around to see Rafael with a large wrench. Danny appeared out of nowhere and slammed his brother into the ground. Suddenly they started speaking quickly in Spanish. Jack looked helplessly at Martin. "Do you understand what they're saying?" Jack asked.

Martin shook his head. "I took Spanish for one semester." Martin said quietly.

Jack and Martin rushed over to help Danny. They handcuffed Rafael. "Assaulting a federal officer is a felony Rafael." Martin said firmly.

Rafael quickly said something in Spanish to Danny. "This is America Rafi. I am not helping you after you were about to hit my co-workers." Danny hissed back in English.

Rafael looked surprised. "Co-workers? I knew you worked for the FBI, but I didn't know you worked with them! Oh crap Danny…" Rafael said realizing the trouble he was in.

"You have the right to remain silent…" Danny began.

"Espera! I heard that someone was looking to hurt you. That's all I know." Rafael said quickly.

Danny smiled. "Gracias," Danny said. "Now let me finish. You have the right to an attorney…"

Martin and Jack watched as Danny put Rafael into a car.

A/N- Espera is Spanish for 'Wait'. Gracias is Spanish for 'Thank you'.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Rafael sat in an FBI interrogation room with Danny and Jack. Rafael was speaking quickly in Spanish again. "Stop it!" Danny shouted at last. "You're giving me a headache. If you have something to say, say it in English."

Rafael suddenly laughed. "I see how you are now _Alvarez_. I don't know who you're fooling though. We all know that Danny Taylor isn't even your real name. We all know English isn't your first language. You are trying so hard to be an American by changing your name and speaking English fluently, but you still have an accent." Rafael taunted.

"You do know you have the right to remain silent." Danny hissed.

Rafael noticed he hit a nerve. "So what's the problem little brother? Mama isn't here to bail you out of trouble this time." Rafael said. "And it's all your fault. If you hadn't told papa to stop yelling at mama, they wouldn't have gotten in that car accident and they wouldn't have died!"

"I had no control over papa's extensive drinking! We would have gotten in a car accident either way. As I recall, I was trapped in there with them for hours." Danny shouted back.

"I bet your co-workers don't know much about you. I bet they don't know how papa beat you when he was drunk and stuck you in a closet for hours and how I found a key and got you out. This is how you repay me?" Rafael asked angrily.

"Rafael, this is 2006 and we are not concerned about what happened in the past. All I need to know is did you get a name for this person who said something about hurting me?" Danny pressed.

"Oh, so you're trying to shut me up now?" Rafael asked. "Are you afraid of what people will actually think of you? Are you afraid of yourself?"

Danny shook his head. "I'm willing to say I never saw anything at the repair shop. If I didn't see anything, you won't be looking at jail time." Danny said.

It was the hardest thing Danny had to do. He wanted his brother in jail, yet he didn't but at the same time he needed to know who was trying to kill him and his friends. Rafael smiled. "That's what I'm talking about Alvarez! Alright, his name was Christopher Roget." Rafael said.

Reluctantly, Danny took Rafael's handcuffs off. "Gracias," Rafael said swiftly walking out of the room.

Danny put his head in his hands. Jack walked over to him. "Are you alright?" Jack asked quietly.

Danny nodded. "Yes, but he is right. My name isn't Danny Taylor." Danny said sighing. "And as much as you know about Danny Taylor, there isn't much you know about Danny Alvarez."

((-))

Although they would never admit to watching Rafael's interrogation, Sam, Martin and Vivian were all outside watching. They were surprised at how much they didn't know about Danny. Sam, Vivian and Martin all returned to their desks just as Danny and Jack walked back in. "Did you get anything?" Vivian asked.

Jack nodded. "We got a name. Christopher Roget." Jack said quickly.

"I'll run the name." Martin volunteered sitting down at his computer.

"Meanwhile, I still think we should look at some of our cases." Sam offered. "Maybe there's a case where you got particularly involved?"

Danny shrugged. "I had that excessive force complaint, but…" Danny began.

Vivian smiled. "We all know. I bet at one time or another, we've had an excessive force complaint. It's just what happens when criminals are unhappy." Vivian said.

Danny nodded while he reread the card. He looked slightly puzzled. "How does this guy know us so well?" Danny asked. "It's not like we broadcast our personal lives, yet he knows every detail."

"Maybe he stalks us," Sam suggested quietly.

Martin stood up quickly. "Guys, Christopher Roget was killed a few days ago." Martin said as he walked over to a printer. "He had a piece of paper with a cryptic message on it."

Martin handed the paper to Jack. "It's a message in Spanish." Jack said in a surprised tone.

Danny quickly read the paper. "Cute," Danny muttered.

"What does it say?" Vivian asked crowding around the paper.

"It doesn't translate directly, but basically it says 'Gotcha,'." Danny said.

Sam looked over at Martin. "How was Roget killed?" Sam asked.

"9 mm," Martin replied. "They weren't able to match the ballistics."

Danny put his head in his hands. "So what are we thinking?" Jack asked.

"Maybe Rafael killed Christopher," Sam suggested.

"But why? Why would he give us a name if he killed the guy?" Danny asked.  
"It doesn't make sense."

"Unless Rafael was trying to throw us off track." Vivian said.

"But why leave the note?" Martin asked.

Sam sighed. "Okay this is just a theory, but what if Christopher Roget is going around saying he wants to kill Danny and then Rafael hears and then he is killed by an unrelated event?" Sam asked.

"Why would he want to kill Danny in the first place though?" Martin asked.

Danny thought for a moment. "Roget? Didn't we work a case years ago with a girl…Elizabeth Roget? We were too late. The person already killed Elizabeth and we had no leads as to who it was. Didn't she have a brother named Christopher?" Danny asked.

Martin went over to his computer and typed in the name Elizabeth Roget. He nodded. "Yes. That is the case." Martin said as he looked at the Christopher Roget murder case. "Wait, I've just gotten an update. They found a match to the ballistics. It's a match to a local drug dealer."

Danny sighed. "We just got led into a wild goose chase." Danny muttered.

Everyone looked at each other. Danny's English didn't make any sense. It was sometimes said that stress caused people from foreign countries to slip up in their second language. The team could only wonder if this was the case.

"But the note?" Vivian pressed.

Martin sighed. "Apparently the drug dealer is from Mexico and Christopher was doing drugs. When Christopher didn't pay put, the drug dealer promised he would find Christopher. So that's what the 'gotcha' was all about." Martin explained reading the report further.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Danny sighed. They were all back at square one. They still didn't know who was threatening to kill them or why. It was a thought that was perhaps more terrifying than death. A mysterious person was out in the world plotting to kill them right now as they were sitting drinking a cup of coffee. Who? Why? What? When? Where? How?

Sam patted Danny's shoulder. "It's going to be fine. We learned a lot today." Sam said quietly.

Danny looked at her. "What did we learn Sam? All we learned is that we wasted a lot of time." Danny muttered.

Sam smiled. "Not necessarily. We now know that Christopher Roget was not involved and that your brother was not involved. So it appears that the person we're looking for is someone that we caught or a victim or a family member, but either way, its work related." Sam said listing the items off with her fingers. "We learned a lot today."

Danny gave her a small smile. "At least someone is optimistic," Danny said.

Sam nodded. "When a situation looks bad, I like to look for the good in it and by doing this, we gain more information." Sam said going back to her desk.

Vivian was watching the clock. "It's eight o'clock. Why don't we all go home?" Vivian suggested looking at Martin, Sam, Danny and Jack working.

Everyone looked up at her. "We can't go home. As soon as we leave the FBI, we are not safe." Martin said firmly.

Vivian sighed. "Martin please…" Vivian began.

Jack shook his head. "No Viv. Martin is right. I'm not taking the chance. We are all staying here." Jack said.

Vivian gave Jack a small smile. "Yes Jack, but I have a kid as well as a husband. Reggie hardly ever sees me. I'd like to go home." Vivian said as she began to walk away.

Jack stepped in front of her. "I can't let you leave." Jack said sternly.

Vivian looked surprised. "Excuse me Jack," Vivian said as she began to walk around Jack.

Jack blocked her off. Vivian looked up at Jack angrily. "Look, I know you are very worried about all of us, but…" Vivian began angrily.

Vivian decided to stop. She was very angry with Jack for acting the way he did, but yet she understood. She didn't feel like arguing with Jack because she would have felt the same way. "Jack," Vivian said more softly. "I need to go home."

The look that Jack gave Vivian was almost heartbreaking. "I'll be here in the morning." Vivian promised. "And I'll call every hour if it'll make you feel better."

Jack gave a dry laugh. "Just make sure you're here in the morning," Jack said suddenly quiet.

Vivian nodded. "Thank you," Vivian said walking past Jack into the hallway.

Jack simply watched her wondering if he made a mistake or not.

((-))

Martin stood up and stretched. He yawned as he looked at the clock. It was already nine o'clock and although that wasn't too late, worked at the FBI usually ended around five o'clock unless you were working a huge case and needed to work overtime.

Martin wanted to go home, yet he didn't. At home, he wouldn't feel as safe as being at the FBI. However, at home Martin would be more relaxed. After all, everyone feels a sense of security and…well, home was just home. Martin looked over at Jack to see his was now in his office.

Casually making his way to Jack's office, Martin decided to go home. He knocked on Jack's door and Jack motioned him in. "I'm heading out for tonight," Martin said calmly.

Jack nodded. "Alright, see you tomorrow." Jack said.

Martin internally let out a sigh of relief. It was much easier than he thought it would be.

((-))

Sam saw everyone slowly leaving. She would have been brave and stuck it out at the FBI, but personally, she did not want to spend the night at the FBI. It may have been safer, but it certainly was not home. After Martin left, she left.

((-))

Danny was suddenly aware that it was only he and Jack left at the FBI. Danny wanted to just stay at the FBI where he felt safe, but he didn't want Jack to feel sorry for him. Danny didn't want anyone's pity. Yeah his life was hard, but guess what? Life for everyone is hard.

He just needed time. Danny knew that time healed all wounds…or at least most of them. Danny sighed as he became merged in his thoughts. He was painfully aware that Jack was watching him. He knew that Jack would be coming over any minute to talk to him. "Danny," Jack said behind him.

Danny turned around. "Yeah?" Danny asked tiredly.

"Are you going home?" Jack asked.

Danny knew he couldn't live at the FBI. He would have to go home eventually. Danny nodded. "Yeah, I'm just going to finish up this paperwork." Danny said with a small smile.

Jack didn't look impressed. "Are you sure?" Jack pressed.

Danny nodded. "Of course," Danny said.

Jack shrugged. "Alright then. I'll see you tomorrow." Jack said as he began to walk into the darkness.

((-))

"Danny…Danny…" A voice called from the darkness. "Danny…Danny…"

Danny sat up straight. "What to come out and play Danny?" The voice taunted.

The voice sounded like it was getting louder and louder meaning that the person was probably close by. Danny felt his heart racing as he looked around. Most of the lights were turned off leaving the office an eerie dark. "Who's there?" Danny asked with all the strength he could manage.

Trying to be as quiet as possible, Danny pulled out his gun. "You know who I am Agent Alvarez…and I know who you are…come and play with me!" The voice said before laughing. "And put the gun away! Didn't your daddy ever tell you not to play with guns? Or was he too drunk to notice?"

Danny frantically looked around. "The game's just starting Danny." A voice whispered in Danny's ear.

The person was so close, Danny could feel the warm breathe and feel the person's presence. Before Danny could even fire a shot, he felt someone hitting him hard in the head before he fell into the darkness.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Sam, Martin, Jack and Vivian just happened to all get to work at the exact same time. "Must be the cab service," Sam joked in the elevator.

"Yeah, too slow." Vivian agreed. "That's why I take the subway."

They all were chattering happily until they reached the bullpen. There they saw Danny laying on the found with a gun in his hand. They rushed over to Danny. "Call an ambulance!" Sam said frantically.

"Mmm?" Danny moaned.

"He's coming to." Jack said quietly.

"What happened?" Danny asked trying to sit up.

Jack gently pushed Danny down. "Don't try to sit up. We're getting an ambulance." Jack said softly.

Danny shook his head. "You don't need to call an ambulance. I was just hit on the head." Danny said firmly. "I'm fine."

"Sweetie, you were already in a coma because of massive head injuries and having sustained another one couldn't have helped." Vivian said.

Danny managed to sit up. "I'm fine. Please." Danny said pleadingly. "If I notice any signs that I'm going to die, I'll go to the hospital."

Martin looked at Vivian hoping she wouldn't let him not go to the hospital. Vivian sighed. "Alright. I don't like this at all Danny. Lord knows how long you were laying there for!" Vivian exclaimed.

Danny looked up for a clock. "I was attacked at about eleven. I was planning on leaving at about eleven thirty when I heard someone calling my name." Danny said sitting back in his chair. "I asked who was there and then the person replied something about how I should know who it was. I pulled out my gun, but then he whispered something in my ear about how the game was just beginning. I was knocked out after that."

Martin shook his head. "Danny, I really think you need to go to the hospital." Martin said.

Danny smiled. "I'm fine. Really. I wouldn't be saying I'm fine if I didn't mean it. I may have a slight headache, but I'm okay." Danny said.

When Danny stood up, he felt something in his pocket. He looked confused as he pulled out a piece of paper. He quickly read it then looked up. "What is it?" Sam asked concerned.

"A note," Danny said handing it to Jack.

Jack quickly read it.

_Danny, _

_See? I can get to you anywhere! No where is safe if I can get into the FBI! You know, I could have easily killed you there. I could have shot you in the head with your own weapon and made it look like a suicide. Believe me Danny, I wanted to so badly, but I didn't. Why? Because that would have been letting you off too easily. I have better things planned for you. _

_Do you see what I'm willing to do? I can get anywhere, do anything, say anything. All you can do is just watch. Watch. You're helpless Danny. How does it feel to be helpless? Not much fun, is it? _

_It is now that the game has officially begun. _

_Me: 1 _

_FBI: 0_

_Catch me if you can Danny! _

Everyone passed the note around reading it in horror. "Oh my josh! He was really thinking of killing you." Vivian gasped.

Danny nodded. "He would have made it look like a suicide and given my current situation, my history…I doubt anyone would have contradicted it." Danny said.

"I would have." Sam said firmly.

"And I would have as well." Martin said.

"This guy talks about how badly he wanted to kill you." Jack said. "What did you do to him to piss him off so badly?"

Danny shrugged. "If I knew who it was, I could tell you." Danny said.

"The note talks about feeling helpless." Vivian pointed out. "Can you think of anyone who may have been in a situation where they felt helpless?"

Danny put head in his hands. "No." Danny said. "I can't think of anyone."

((-))

Sam went to the woman's restroom to make sure no one was watching when she began to cry. Why would anyone do this to Danny? He was a great person. No one deserved to be treated this way!

Through her blurry eyes, Sam saw a janitor walk in. "Oh. So sorry miss. I didn't know anyone was in here." The man said as he turned to walk back out with his mop and bucket.

Sam wiped her eyes. "It's no problem. I was just leaving." Sam said as she began to walk out into the hall.

"Really?" The janitor asked as he turned back around blocking the door.

Sam barely saw the needle. She then was taken into darkness.

((-))

"Where did Sam go?" Jack asked irritated. "I need her to look at all of the notes."

Vivian looked around. "I think she went to the bathroom." Vivian said.

Jack gave Vivian a look as to ask 'why are you still here?'. Vivian nodded and walked out into the hall and to the nearest bathroom. When she walked in, she saw a janitor. "Oh are you cleaning?" Vivian asked.

The janitor turned to reveal that he was stuffing Sam trash bucket on his cart. "Oh my…" Vivian began as she pulled out her gun.

The janitor smiled. "I got one of those too Viv." The man replied laughing as he pulled out a gun.

Vivian didn't waste any time in shooting the man. Somehow, Vivian missed. She only grazed the man's shoulder. She took aim again, but wasn't quick enough as she too was shoved into a garbage can with a needle in her arm.

The man innocently wheeled the cart out of the bathroom and down the hall. He pretended to be confused when agents started running around every where. He smiled. Things were going well.

((-))

Martin, Danny and Jack suddenly looked up when they heard a loud bang. Alarms were going off implicating that it was indeed a gunshot. They all exchanged worried looks when they realized Sam and Vivian were not back from the bathroom.

Danny wasted no time sprinting out of the room and racing into the nearest woman's bathroom. "Viv…Sam!" Danny called.

He looked around. No one was there, but he did see a gun on the floor. He raced back out looking around frantically for them. He didn't see anyone other than the agents trying to figure out what happened.

Jack ran over to Danny. "Are they there?" Jack asked.

Danny shook his head. "I found Viv's gun. It's been recently fired because it's still hot. She fired the shot. She and Sam are in trouble!" Danny shouted so Jack could hear him above the alarms.

Jack understood that this meant that the person was probably still in the building. He quickly called the front desk and told them to shut the building down. They didn't even ask questions as the alarm was turned off and the doors were shut.

"Vivian and Sam have to still be in the building." Danny said quickly running down the hall looking in every office.

Jack and Martin did the same and told everyone else to do it as well. Other agents joined in their searched, but they could not find Vivian or Sam. Danny saw a janitor waiting for an elevator. "Have you seen a woman with blonde hair or a black lady?" Danny asked quickly.

The janitor shook his head. "No sir. I haven't." The janitor replied in a cold voice.

Danny knew he heard that voice before. On a hunch, Danny looked into the large garbage can the man had on his cart. As he began to do so, the janitor raced down the stairs. "Help!" Danny shouted loudly as he began to race down the stairs after the man.

Danny flew down the stairs until he caught up with the man. They struggled for a while before the man threw Danny down the stairs. The man made a dash for it and ran out one of the emergency doors that was not locked during the lockdown.

Martin and Jack helped Danny up. "Are you okay?" Martin asked.

Danny nodded. "Vivian and Sam?" Danny asked out of breath.

"They were drugged and are on their way to the hospital." Jack replied.

Danny started to feel a bit lightheaded. "I think I need to go to the hospital too. I feel dizzy." Danny said in almost a whisper.

Aware of how weak he was, Martin and Jack helped support most of Danny's weight. They quickly helped him down the stairs and into the waiting ambulance.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Dr. Lamoy walked out into the waiting room to see Jack Malone and Martin Fitzgerald waiting for news on their three friends. "I was hoping I would never see you or your friends again." Dr. Lamoy said with a smile.

Jack, however, did not smile back. "How are they?" Jack asked.

Dr. Lamoy kept smiling. "They are doing fine. Luckily Mrs. Johnson and Ms. Spade were drugged with a simple sedative that has no long lasting effects. Right now they're just filling out paperwork and they should be good to go. Danny appears to be fine, but we want to keep him here overnight just to be safe. He doesn't have any broken bones or anything like that." Dr. Lamoy said.

Martin sighed. Things could never be simple for Danny. "I don't know what's going on, but when we brought in Ms. Spade, in her pocket there was a letter." Dr. Lamoy said softly taking a piece of paper out of her pocket. "From what it sounds like, you all are in danger and Danny saved Mrs. Johnson's and Ms. Spade's life. It sounded like the person was going to kill them."

Jack took the letter and began to read.

_FBI, _

_Hello again. If you're reading this, then you have found the body of Samantha Spade. I bet you want to know how I got her. Well, I'd be glad to tell you. I dressed up like a janitor and got a cart. I made an ID badge and then waltzed right into the FBI. I waited for a while until Samantha entered the bathroom. I walked in after her and then drugged her, stuck her in the garbage can in my cart and went down the elevator. I murdered her right outside. _

_There's nothing you can do to stop me. _

_Me: 2_

_FBI: 0 _

Martin was reading the letter over Jack's shoulder. "He's writing the letters before he does anything?" Martin suggested.

"Hmm…maybe just this one. For all the other ones, he had written them after he committed the crime." Jack said.

Dr. Lamoy sighed. "Whoever you're dealing with, you better find him soon. Danny can only take so much as can the rest of you. I don't want to see any of you anymore. I'm afraid the next time I do, it'll be in the city morgue." Dr. Lamoy said walking away.

((-))

Jack drove Sam, Vivian and Martin back to the FBI building. There Sam and Vivian sat down on a couch in Jack's office. "So what happened?" Jack asked.

Sam sighed. "I was…upset so I went to the bathroom to cool down. When I got inside, I was alone. The door opened soon after that and it was the janitor. He said he was sorry, he didn't know anyone was in the bathroom. When I told him it was okay and that I was leaving, he blocked the door and I barely had time to see the needle. It was fuzzy after that." Sam said.

Vivian nodded. "When Sam was gone for two seconds, you asked me to go get her. I went to the nearest woman's restroom to find Sam. When I walked in there was a janitor. He turned around and I saw he was stuffing Sam into a garbage can. I pulled out my gun and shot. I thought I had a clean shot, but I missed. Before I could take another shot, he had already stuck a needle in my arm. That's the last thing I remember." Vivian said.

Jack rubbed his forehead. "What happened after that?" Sam asked quietly.

"Danny took off like a race horse towards the bathroom. When he found Vivian's gun, he ran back into the hall. We're not sure exactly what happened next, but we're getting video surveillance." Martin said.

Jack's phone rang. "Okay…thanks." Jack muttered. "Speaking of which, that was the tech. lab. They have the tape."

Everyone quickly stood up and left towards the lab.

((-))

"Here's Danny running into the bathroom and then running back out. He meets up with the janitor, says something and the janitor says something back. When Danny comes near the cart, the janitor runs and Danny follows." A lab tech said. "Then we go over to the video surveillance in the stairwell. Danny chases the guy down several flights of stairs before catching up with him. They fight for about a minute before the janitor literally picks Danny up and throws him down the stairs. The janitor makes a break for it and then we see Jack and Martin going to help Danny."

"Can you enhance this guy's face?" Jack asked.

The lab tech nodded. "I already did." The lab tech said handing Jack a photo. "But it won't do you much good. The guy put on a ton of fake mask, make-up stuff."

"Damn!" Martin swore. "We were so close."

"It could have turned out differently. If Vivian didn't shoot her gun and cause panic, no one would have noticed anything. If Danny hadn't run so quickly, he might not have been able to find Vivian and Sam." Jack said gently.

"So this guy is smart and willing to do anything," Vivian said quietly.

"That's probably the most dangerous combination there is." Sam replied.

((-))

Danny was released from the hospital the next day and quickly returned back to work. "Were you able to get any DNA?" Danny asked breathlessly as he sat down at his desk.

Jack looked confused. "DNA from what?" Jack asked.

"When I was fighting with the guy, I knew he was going to be able to throw me down the stairs, so I pulled out a lot of his hair." Danny explained.

Jack quickly pulled out his cell phone and called a CSU team. "Come on," Jack said as he began to quickly walk down to the stairwell.

Danny, Martin, Vivian and Sam all followed. When they arrived, they saw that the CSU team was already looking for evidence. One investigator walked up to Jack with a bag. "Your guy can really, really, really pull hair. We've defiantly got enough hair and I'm sure there will be follicular tags…" The investigator began.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Jack barked.

"Umm…that means there should be DNA sir…" The investigator said quietly.

"Good," Jack said quickly walking out of the stairwell.

Martin, Sam, Vivian and Danny followed him back into his office. "Now, while we're waiting for the DNA results…" Jack began.

"Which we won't get for a day or two." Vivian warned.

Jack ignored her comment. "I want all of you to go through case files and search for a guy that looks like whoever is on the tape." Jack said. "And we can run facial recognition."

"That might be a little hard because of his rubber-mask, make-up, stuff." Martin said.

"We can try, can't we?" Jack asked.

"Hey, what's your problem? We're trying to do our best here." Martin yelled standing up.

"My problem is that we've got a guy who is smart enough to get into the FBI and he's trying to kill us! I am not and I repeat, I am not going to let some guy kill any of you because he's not happy!" Jack shouted back standing up.

"It sounds like you're trying to protect yourself." Sam said quietly.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Not you too! What in the heck is wrong with everyone? Last time I checked, I was with you guys!" Jack hollered angrily.

Suddenly, the whole room was in an uproar. "Hey! Hey!" Danny shouted as loud as he could.

The room became eerily silent. "Don't you see what's going on? We're giving this person exactly what he wants. He wants us not to trust each other, but we are all in this together. That's something we can't forget. No matter how angry we are with each other, we are all fighting one person. We are allies as well as good friends. Just because we're scared doesn't mean we can take it out on anyone else. We are a team. No one's losses weigh more than another's. It affects us all the same way." Danny said gently. "The second we loose sight of all of that, is the second where we are most vulnerable."

"Yeah, that's easy for you to say." Martin muttered.

Danny shook his head. "No, it isn't. All of you sometimes make me very angry, but I have to take a minute to assess the problem. Each time I do, I come to the same conclusion. That conclusion is that we are a team and that there are no heroes and no losers. We are all one unit and when you make me angry, I simply have to remember that we are all fighting one common enemy." Danny said.

"You are making no sense." Martin said. "I think you hit your head three too many times."

Danny smiled. "What I'm trying to say is that we just can't get mad at each other over little things." Danny said simply.

Vivian nodded. "I agree with you there Danny. We all need to take a breather for a minute." Vivian said.

Jack's phone rang. Jack quickly picked it up. "Malone," Jack said.

"Danny Taylor. I want to speak with him." A cold voice said.

Jack looked slightly confused before handing the phone over to Danny. "Hello?" Danny asked into the phone.

"Hello Danny. It's me." The voice said before laughing.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Danny knew that voice. It was the man. The man who had knocked him out. It was the man who dressed as a janitor and attempted to kill Vivian and Sam. It was him! Danny quickly put the phone on speak phone. "What do you want?" Danny demanded.

"Oh Danny, why did you put us on speaker phone? I was so looking forward to a private conversation with you." The voice replied.

"Who are you?" Danny questioned.

"You should know Danny. But let's talk about what happened yesterday. You've made me very weary and angry Danny." The voice said.

"How?" Danny asked.

"You knew it was me and I had to run. I should have just killed Sam in the bathroom, but you managed to save her and Vivian." The voice said disgustedly. "You always think you're better than me!"

"I don't even know who you are." Danny said desperately.

"Now it is on Danny! This is just you and me. I sick of our little game and believe me when I say you are going to pay for this! You can't save everyone Danny! You always try. I see how you help everyone and are so nice and kind, but that can't undo your past! You deserve to die! You…make…me…so…mad!" The voice shouted. "I'm going to make you suffer so badly you'll be begging for death and I will give you death!"

"What did I do to you?" Danny asked pleadingly. "Tell me how I can fix it!"

"You can't fix this Danny." The voice said strangely becoming calm. "I am going to kill all of your friends, but Danny, you need to realize that you are not better than me. I am far more intelligent than you will ever be."

"I acknowledge that. You are far more superior than me. You are obviously more intelligent and you got away from me yesterday, didn't you? All I'm asking is that if you want to kill me, kill me. Don't mess with my co-workers." Danny bargained.

"Cute. You're trying to make me feel better so I'll comply, but it won't work! Killing you would be…to gentle. Making you live with the guilt of knowing why your co-workers are dead is something much better than torture." The voice said sighing. "But now Danny, I'm afraid I'm going to have to go. Let the game resume."

The line went dead after that. Danny slammed down the phone. "Damn!" Danny swore.

"The guy said something about how you thought you were better than he was." Sam said. "Maybe you did something and this guy got the wrong impression."

Danny shook his head. "I have no idea what I did to piss this guy off so badly he wants to kill all of you, but I'm sorry. God whatever it is, I hope I can fix it." Danny said.

"You know, this guy could be mentally ill. You might not have done anything at all. This may be a guy who smiled at you and you didn't smile back." Vivian suggested.

Danny looked at her with a smile. "That is no reason to go through all of this work to kill someone just for not smiling at them." Danny said.

"I read about an incident like this in Nevada. It's possible." Vivian said.

"This guy is out to get you." Jack said quietly. "And in a situation like this, it almost always ends the same. The guy will probably confront you. When he does so, he will have a weapon and you will be forced to shoot. Most of time when something like this happens, it's either him or you. Could you shoot him if you needed to?"

Danny looked at Jack oddly. "Of course I could." Danny said. "But I'll do anything to avoid something like that."

Jack nodded. He knew Danny probably would be able to take someone out if necessary, but he had to make sure. "So…" Jack began.

Van Doren walked into Jack's office. "Jack, is anyone missing?" Van Doren interrupted.

Jack shook his head. "No, but…" Jack began.

"Then you have no case to investigate. Good." Van Doren said handing Jack a file. "We have a missing seventeen year old…"

"Hand it to Rick's team," Jack said coldly.

Van Doren shook her head. "You're not investigating a case." Van Doren said.

"Yes I am. If we don't look into this further…" Jack began.

"I understand that your lives are at risk, but this is not a case for the missing persons unit. The criminal investigative division has agreed to look into this case…" Van Doren began.

"No one investigates this team but this team." Jack said firmly.

"If you do not comply forthwith, I will fire you personally Jack." Van Doren threatened slamming the file on Jack's desk and turning to leave quickly.

"Sorry about that. Where were we?" Jack asked.

Vivian looked at Jack surprised. "We're not investigating this." Vivian said.

"Yes we are." Jack said.

Danny shook his head. "Van Doren's right. Other people need our help. We can't figure out who this guy is because he's threatening us. Another set of fresh eyes might do some good." Danny said.

Martin, Sam and Vivian nodded in agreement. Jack sighed deeply as he opened the file. "Thomas Witherly was taken from his home at seven o'clock…" Jack began as he read the file.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Danny sat down in front of his computer at home. It had been a long day and a very stressful one at that. The criminal investigative division deemed that the missing persons unit was not in danger. Basically, it was their way of saying, 'this is too hard, hope you don't get killed!'.

The first thing Danny did on his computer was check his e-mail. He found that he had one new e-mail. He opened the e-mail up only to find a horrid message.

_Got them. You can't save them Danny. _

_Me: 4 _

_FBI: 0_

_I'll contact you in a while._

Danny quickly picked up his phone and called all of his co-worker's houses. When no one answered, Danny called their cell phones. When no one answered their cell phones, Danny knew that something was wrong. His stomach felt knotted and he felt immediately sick.

Danny took a deep breath and waited. His phone rang within minutes. "Taylor," Danny answered breathlessly.

"Hello Danny. I assume you called your friends only to find that they're not there." The voice taunted.

"Yes and I just want them back." Danny said firmly.

The voice laughed. "Meet me on top of a skyscraper." The voice said.

"Which one?" Danny asked.

"You know which one." The voice replied before hanging up.

Danny felt his heart race. He had no idea which skyscraper this guy was talking about! There were millions of skyscrapers in New York City alone! Taking a deep breath, Danny thought for a minute. _Where has this guy been going?_ Danny thought. _The FBI building! _

Finding his gun, Danny ran out of his apartment and raced into the subway. He was going to save his co-workers or die trying.

((-))

Danny somehow made it on to the rooftop of the FBI without breaking down. What if the man already killed his co-workers? Danny looked around. He saw Jack, Martin, Sam and Vivian all handcuffed to a heater of some sort. He rushed over to them. They looked all alright, but each one of their faces held a look of terror. Danny had always seen Sam smiling, but now she looked so scared. Martin had a tough time, but Danny never saw him…frightened. In fact, Danny had never seen his co-workers scared and that scared him. "Are you okay?" Danny whispered.

Jack gave Danny a slight nod. "Where is the man?" Danny pressed.

"Right here," A voice said behind Danny.

Danny spun around pulling out his gun. It was rather dark, so Danny could barely see the man's face. The man was also holding a gun aimed right at Danny. "Mathew Rodriguez," Danny gasped once the man stepped into the light further.

"Very good. I was almost afraid you would forget me." Mathew said with a lopsided smile. "Tell me about the case."

Danny cleared his throat. "What you did to those people…it was the worst case I've ever worked on. You kidnapped several people and then brutally tortured them. You sent us taunting letters, but we were never able to find the people in time. We knew who you were, but you suddenly disappeared. We assumed you were dead." Danny said quietly.

"But I never left the city! I changed my name and my appearance, but I was still here. I've been watching you for five years. I know you and your friends better than you can imagine." Mathew said. "I know what I did to you. You spent hours working and you almost starting drinking again, but you somehow moved on. I didn't. I want you to die. Why? Because you figured everything out. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have had to stop killing people."

"How is this going to end?" Danny pressed.

Mathew laughed. "I'm going to kill your friends here and push you off the ledge. You see Danny, you kept getting letters and all of this was too much for you. You finally snapped. You took out all of your pain on your innocent co-workers and then took your own life." Mathew said sighing. "It's all so tragic, but no one will miss you."

"What do you mean?" Danny asked slightly confused.

"Come on! You haven't had a girlfriend in years, you don't have any family expect for a brother who doesn't care about you! The only people that care about you are right here and you're going to kill them! It's a perfect crime!" Mathew ranted.

Danny shook his head. "No one is going to believe that." Danny said quietly.

"You have no one Danny!" Mathew shouted.

"Shut up!" Sam shouted at last.

Mathew turned his gun towards Sam. "She'll be the first to go, but I'm going to need your gun and I'll need you to pull the trigger." Mathew said putting his gun behind Danny's head.

Danny began to shake. "You want me to kill my own co-workers?" Danny asked feeling slightly ill.

"Yes. Do it or I'll kill you right now." Mathew said.

Danny turned around and pressed his forehead against Mathew's gun. "Go ahead. Shoot me now. Either way, I'm not making it off this roof tonight, but I will not take my friends with me!" Danny shouted.

Mathew seemed slightly surprised by Danny's action. Danny shoved Mathew down and they began to struggle. They became dangerously close to the edge. Before Danny knew anything, he began to teeter on the edge before falling into the air…


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Somehow, Danny grabbed the edge of the building. He held on. He had no intention of dying. Regardless of what Mathew said, Danny had something to live for. He had his job and his friends. During Danny's thirty years of living, he learned that even when you hit rock bottom, you're not at the bottom and you can always get back up.

A hand appeared from the top of the roof just when Danny's right hand slipped off of the roof. "Trust me Danny," Mathew's voice said. "You've got nothing to lose. If you don't take my hand, you'll fall to your death. If you take my hand and I let go, you'll still die. However, if I don't let go, you'll live. You have to make a choice Danny!"

"Don't do it Danny!" Jack's voice shouted loudly.

Danny knew that Mathew was right. He had a better chance if he took Mathew's hand. Danny firmly grasped onto Mathew's outstretched hand. Mathew pulled him up and Danny collapsed on the roof. "Thank you," Danny muttered.

Mathew gave him a small smile. "I wouldn't have saved you unless I needed you to finish my plan. Now, you need to kill these people." Mathew said.

Danny shook his head and threw himself against Mathew. Now their roles were reversed. Danny was holding on to Mathew as Mathew dangled off the building. "You can't save everyone." Mathew said.

"Yes I can," Danny said keeping his grip on Mathew although he felt like just letting him go.

"You know, it's whether you win or lose Danny, its how you play the game. All the choices you make affect the outcome of the game. And you played the game very well. All I wanted to do was to show you that each and every one of our choices affects us. I'm sorry about everything that happened, but I felt it was necessary. You're a great agent Danny, but you can't help everyone. Goodbye," Mathew said before letting go.

Danny watched in horror as Mathew hit the ground with a sickening crunch. Danny stood up rather dazed. He felt all of his co-workers eyes on him. Danny took a deep breath and realized that he needed to make sure they were safe. Danny rushed over to them. "Are all of you okay?" Danny asked.

Martin nodded. "He handcuffed us with our own handcuffs." Martin informed Danny.

Danny understood almost immediately. Each set of handcuffs had a different set of keys. "Are your keys in your pocket?" Danny asked.

Martin nodded again. Danny took them out and undid Martin's handcuffs. Danny did the same with everyone else. "Are any of you physically hurt?" Danny asked.

Vivian shook her head. "No, we're all okay." Vivian said.

Danny ran his hand through his hair. "I'll call Van Doren. We should all stay on the scene and get our statements taken…" Danny began.

Jack put his hand on Danny's shoulder. "It's okay. I'll take care of it." Jack said gently.

Danny looked at Jack with tears in his eyes. "He had no intention of killing me or any of us. It was a suicide." Danny said through choking tears.

Jack took Danny in his arms and held him. "Everything alright," Jack muttered.

((-))

Ten minutes later, the scene was covered in crime scene tape and lights were flashing everywhere. "We'll need your statement." An IAB investigator informed Danny.

Danny nodded. "He's not giving one tonight." Jack said coming up behind Danny.

"We need one though…" The IAB investigator began.

"It's one in the morning and he's gone though enough for tonight. He'll talk to you in the morning." Jack barked.

The investigator scurried away. Danny gave Jack a grateful look. He was glad that Jack sometimes broke the rules.

((-))

When Danny came to work the next day, he felt like he was walking in slow motion. Every time Danny passed by a person, he would see them whispering to another person. He could only imagine the rumors going around.

_I heard he pushed the guy off the roof. _

_Yeah and I heard this guy was selling Danny drugs. _

_No, that's a lie. Danny was up there with the guy because they planned to kill Jack Malone. _

_I heard he was going to kill Samantha Spade. Either that or he was going to make out with her. _

Danny groaned when he sat down and saw IAB investigators walking towards him. "We need your statement." One of them said.

Danny nodded as he followed them into an interrogation room. Martin, Sam, Vivian and Jack all watched as Danny was led away.

((-))

"We believe you acted appropriately. However, we will need to do some other investigative measures. Until then you are on desk duty as is the rest of your team. We already have your gun. We are also requesting that you visit the in-house physiatrist. Do you understand Agent Taylor?" An IAB investigator asked after they got Danny's statement.

Danny nodded. "I understand." Danny said firmly before walking out of the room.

((-))

When Danny sat down at his desk, he found he had a new e-mail. When he opened it, all it contained was a link and a simple message.

_Me: Nothing_

_FBI: Danny Taylor…everything they will ever need _

Danny clicked on the link to find that it led him to a video. It was of Mathew Rodriguez. "Hello Danny, if you are watching this, then I am already dead. I'm not sure what I told you before I let go, but I want you to know, I meant what I said. You're a good agent and…and well, I think this case has taught you many lessons. The first being you don't know what you've got until it's gone…" Mathew began.

Martin, Sam, Vivian and Jack all stood behind Danny watching Mathew. Danny deleted the e-mail before Mathew could say anything else on the pre-recorded tape. "Why did you do that?" Sam asked from behind Danny.

Danny smiled. "I already understand what he's trying to say." Danny said looking at all of them. "He's trying to say that I'm lucky to have friends like you."

Sam, Martin, Vivian and Jack all smiled back.

We never _really_ do know what we have until it's gone.

**The End**

Disclaimer: I do not own Without a Trace.

A/N- Wow! This is probably one of my favorite stories which is why I'm so upset to be…to be…ending it! I've really enjoyed writing this story and I hope you've enjoyed reading it. If you liked this story, check out my other stories. Thanks for reading!

Kylie Anderson


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